This is claimed by some to be the first patent for a circular saw. The circular saw was invented many times in many places; some hand-powered, others externally powered; some used enormous blades for cutting wood, others tiny blades for cutting ivory or gemstones. Some of these inventors never perfected their invention, others figured out solutions for tensioning the sawblade to avoid warping, and for safely supporting and guiding the work-piece through the blade. And most of these early inventors did not obtain patents for their invention. So it is virtually impossible to agree on a "first" inventor.

Various articles claiming Samuel Miller as the inventor of the circular saw invariably point to this patent. The patent itself reportedly mentioned the circular saw-blade only in passing, which implies that it was already a known technology. The patent itself describes how to power the saw by a rope or chain passing over pulleys and a sliding table that feeds the work into the saw.